Congestive heart failure is a chronic, degenerative condition that impairs the heart's ability to pump blood at normal filling pressures to adequately meet the energy requirements of the body. It is estimated that 4.9 million Americans suffer from various degrees of congestive heart failure (CHF), with about 400,000 new cases identified each year. Heart failure is the most common diagnosis in hospital patients over the age of 65, and it carries a mortality rate higher than that for malignant tumors. One in five CHF patients dies within one year of diagnosis and only 15% survive more than 10 years.
There is no cure for CHF, short of a heart transplant. However, advances in pharmacology have provided improved treatment programs. Multidrug treatment regimens that include diuretics, vasodilators and inotropic agents such as angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors, can slow the progression of CHF and reduce the number of acute episodes. However, treatment remains directed at symptoms and is most effective in the early stages of CHF.
In later stages of the disease, mechanical devices can play an important role. Left ventricular pacemakers can improve the heart's function as a pump, while cardiac assist devices may be used to help support the failing heart. These devices primarily address the needs of approximately 25% of CHF patients. Thus, there remains a need for improved treatments for patients with heart failure. The present invention meets this long-felt need.